Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya is urging the UN to list Al-Shabaab under the same sanctions as Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, but foreign donors say the move could leave millions in drought-stricken Somalia without aid. The proposed listing — which could take effect as soon as Thursday — comes …
Read More »UPDF’s uncertain future in Somalia
Despite opposition from troop-contributing countries, UN cuts down numbers again Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | July 13. Overnight assault on hotel in Kismayo port city. 26 people killed including a Briton, three Kenyans, three Tanzanians, two Americans and one Canadian. Some Chinese are injured. July 22. Car bomb explodes …
Read More »Nairobi attack highlights ‘new generation’ of Shabaab recruits
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Profiles of key suspects in last month’s terror attack in Nairobi point to the worrying rise of a new generation of Kenyan jihadists, analysts say. Police are hunting Ali Salim Gichunge, the suspected mastermind of the January 15 attack on the Dusit hotel and office complex …
Read More »Shabab blasts kill seven near Somalia presidential palace
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | Seven people were killed Saturday in a double car bomb attack claimed by the jihadist Shabaab group near the presidential palace in the Somali capital Mogadishu, police said. “We have confirmed seven people died in the two blasts and more than ten others wounded,” local …
Read More »Inside Somalia’s wars
How a clan system and external players are complicating the country’s reconstruction Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | When I flew to Mogadishu, Somalia’s sandy capital, on December 16, 2017; I was filled with a heady mix of anxiety and excitement because of the image we all have of …
Read More »Somalia’s defence minister, army chief resign
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | Somalia’s defence minister and army chief have both resigned, without explaining why, in a potential blow to the government’s fight against Shabaab Islamist militants. The resignations come as Somali security forces struggle to contain attacks by the al-Qaeda-linked group. Defence Minister Abdirashid Abdullahi confirmed his …
Read More »CONFIRMED: 18 killed in Mogadishu restaurant attack
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | A suicide car bombing and assault by Shabaab militants on two neighbouring restaurants in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu ended Thursday morning with 18 dead, a government spokesman said. “The operation is over now and the gunmen were killed by the security forces,” said Mohamed Ahmed Arab, spokesman …
Read More »Kampala bomb suspects denied bail for second time
A bail request by four of seven Somali nationals accused of aiding and abetting an Al-Shabab attempt to carry out a second bomb attack on Kampala in 2014, has been denied a second time because they have no permanent residence in Uganda. International Crimes Division court Judge Ezekiel Muhanguzi dismissed the applications of Muhammed Abdul …
Read More »Islamic State makes inroads into Kenya
Recent arrests show the Islamic State’s growing presence in East Africa, where they are recruiting young Kenyans for jihad abroad and raising fears some of them will return to threaten the country. Kenyan intelligence agencies estimate that around 100 men and women may have gone to join the IS in …
Read More »Al-Shabaab already defeated
By Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Attacking malls, football fans, students shows they cannot even attack a well- guarded police station The most atrocious, criminal, cowardly and monstrous attacks by Al-Shabaab against soft and innocent targets such as shoppers in a Shopping Mall, young students in a University or football fans watching …
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